


Rogue

by elenei



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin
Genre: F/M, spies and assassins and everything nice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-28
Updated: 2017-05-28
Packaged: 2018-11-06 02:02:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,965
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11026275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elenei/pseuds/elenei
Summary: Arya is a rogue assassin and Gendry is the elite super solider sent to eliminate her. But when Gendry finally catches up to his target he finds a young girl with a conflicted heart just like his.





	Rogue

“Have a seat, Bull.”

Gendry did as he was ordered but he couldn’t shake the bad feeling that had accompanied him since his summons. The man sitting across from him was no one he knew. He was a suit. Gendry idly wondered if this was the one who selected him for this program in the first place. He never saw the men who were truly in charge. The suit slid a file across the table.

“Your newest assignment.”

Gendry’s eyes roamed over the first page. He saw a date of birth and quickly did the math.

“She’s sixteen. A sixteen year old _girl_.”

“She’s an assassin.”

Gendry repeated her age.

“Waters, this girl has killed more than two dozen people, that we know of, among her victims was Lem Lemoncloak.” Gendry knew the name. He was a fellow Brother. And a mean son of a bitch if Gendry recalled correctly. Gendry realized now what mission had killed him. Gendry was his replacement. “This isn’t some teeny bopper. She’s a dangerous killer and she needs to be stopped.”

Gendry didn’t reply to that. He studied the file more closely.

“She’s doesn’t seem to be associating with the Faceless Men anymore.”

“As far as we can tell she’s gone rogue. We don’t know why.”

“A crisis on conscience?” Gendry offered, smartly.

His superiors indulged him with a smirk. “Not likely. She’s killed twice since fleeing Braavos. And now she’s returned to Westeros. She’s a national security threat.”

“Our latest intelligence suggests she’s settled down, as much as she ever does, in the Riverlands. A town called Stoney Sept. We’re sending you to eliminate her. If should be easy considering….your abilities.” _What does he think?_ Gendry wondered. _That I’ll crush her throat with my bare hands?_ He almost shuddered. Almost. He wasn’t a green boy any longer. Gendry had seen and done too many things. This left him feeling cold but he was used to that. After Gendry joined their Brotherhood the choices that left him feeling good had diminished rather quickly.

He picked up the file and walked from the room without a backwards glance.

* * *

The Target looked even younger in person. She was short, barely over five foot, and skinny with brown hair hanging around her face. She was wearing torn jeans, an oversized hoodie, and sneakers.

She was just a kid.

Gendry had been watching her for five days. She had no routine. She stayed at a different place every night. She seemed to be friends with everyone. She even dropped off his radar completely for one of those days. She wasn’t settling down, though that was for sure. She was waiting.

As the sun went down she headed towards the north of town. He followed her from a great distance. She hadn’t given any indication that she was on to him, like running, but one couldn’t be too careful when dealing with a teenage assassin.  

She ended up at an abandoned building just outside the Stoney Sept. Once it had been a home. But that was before the war. He waited until the house had been dark for hours before moving in.

She was waiting for him. Her first shot missed just barely. He used a fraction of his strength to twist the gun out of her hand. He threw it straight out a window that shattered into the night. By that time she had retrieved a crowbar. He ducked as she swung. She put up one hell of a fight. He had to give her that. She was quick but he was stronger. It all happened so fast when he finally pinned her to the ground and pulled out his gun.

She stared up at him with dark eyes and Gendry’s finger froze on the trigger.

It was all the time she needed to knock his hand to the side. _A bold move_ , Gendry thought. She retrieved the fallen crow bar and swung. 

Everything went dark.

* * *

Gendry came to with a headache but was alive to his surprise. He could sense the girl still in the room with him, even more surprising. He halfheartedly tested the restraints. She had used cuffs. They would’ve kept any other man restrained. Gendry wouldn’t of even needed a lock pick to free himself.

He didn’t want to scare her with a display of his power, though. Gendry scowled at his own instincts. He was here on a mission to kill her. Her fear should have been irrelevant. She was sitting on top of a small round table with her legs folded in front of her. In her hands was a small antique revolver that she was meticulously polishing with a rag.

“You didn’t take your shot,” She said without looking up. “Why not?”

“I don’t know.”

“Is it because I’m a girl?”

_She’s mocking me_ , Gendry thought. But he didn’t answer. He suspected that was exactly the reason why. She hopped down from the table to stand in front of him.

“I’ve killed a lot of people.” She lifted the gun to his forehead. “You could be next.”

“I could. But I don’t think you want to kill me anymore than I want to kill you.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Because you haven’t taken your shot either.”

She also hadn’t run when he was knocked out. He still didn’t know what to make of that.

It was a long moment before she lowered the gun. But she continued to stare. It unnerved him. Gendry felt like she could see inside his mind. He didn’t believe any lie would get past this one. But her face revealed nothing.

“Why’d they send some rookie after me?”

“I’m not a rookie. I’ve been working for the Brotherhood for years.” Gendry mentally punched himself for revealing that. He blamed it on the crowbar she had taken to his head. But he knew it wasn’t that. Gendry healed at an accelerated rate. _It’s her eyes_ , he thought. _Grey and sad and knowing._

“Well somebody fucked up,” She said. “You most of all.”

“I don’t think so,” He argued. “From the moment I read your file I knew something was wrong. I wasn’t supposed to kill you. I see that now.”

“You’re just saying that because I have the upper hand.”

“You think so?”

The cuffs snapped audibly as Gendry pulled them apart and rose from the chair. He towered over her by a foot.  He had also just casually torn her cuffs apart but she wasn’t scared. He could see that. She looked at the snapped restraints and then back up at him. Her expression was curious. Gendry was used to fear.

“You’re _strong_.”

He shrugged.

She chewed on her lip while studying the broken metal.

“Who are you?”

He thought about giving her his codename or any one of his aliases but something compelled him to tell the simple truth.

“Gendry.”

She nodded.

“Okay Gendry. Let’s go get breakfast.”

* * *

She flicked her own file open and began to read. Gendry took a large gulp of coffee. Breach of protocol didn’t even cover this situation. He hadn’t checked in for hours. It wouldn’t be long before they realized he had failed the mission. Gendry wondered what would happen then. When she snorted he looked at her with a raised brow.

“They don’t know half my covers,” she explained.

She sobered up as she began to look through the intel on her family. There wasn’t much but apparently it was more than she knew.

“My sister is alive?”

“Living in the Vale under an alias.”

“With a known criminal.” That was putting it lightly. Petyr Baelish was everything from a childkiller to a pimp.

“Yeah. She’s an influential member of his organization. She goes by Alayne Stone nowadays and is suspected in several murders not to mention extortion and fraud.

“If our parents could see us now.” Her tone was light but Gendry sensed grief behind her words. He dared to ask a question.

“When did you start killing people?”

“I was nine the first time.”

“Jesus fucking Christ.”

“You think I’m some kind of monster.” Her tone wasn’t accusatory or bitter. She said it around a mouthful of waffles like it was a simple statement of fact.

“No.” Gendry said firmly. “I think its fucked up this happened to you. You were a child.” It was the war. They all had done things they regretted. But she was so young. Someone should have protected her.

She furrowed her brows at that. Her look was both conflicted and indignant.

“I’m not a victim.”

She was. But Gendry suspected she would never let herself feel that way nor would she allow someone else to view her as one. He diverted the subject.

“And the Faceless Men. Do they know you’re bumming around Westeros?”

She actually laughed at that. “I have no doubt. But I’m not theirs anymore. I never really was.” She shrugged. “We have an understanding.” Gendry had to be jealous of that. He knew there would be freedom from the Brotherhood for him. Not until death, at least.

“So what are you doing now?”

“I’m going home.”

“Winterfell?” Gendry asked. “It’s under control of the Boltons. That’s in the file. They’re the most powerful gang in the north right now. Thousands of men. Enough ammo to rival several small countries. Dogs. A lot of dogs.”

“I’m aware.”

“My Brothers aren’t going to give up either. They’ll be looking for you.” _And me too._

“They can get in line. I’ve gone up against the Lannisters, the Mountain, the Bloody Mummers, the Freys but the Brotherhood?” Arya scoffed. “They don’t scare me.”

“What are you planning?”                                                                

“I’m going to stop them all.”

“By yourself?”

“If I have to.”

“Is this your way of asking me for help?”

She donned her mask again and looked at him straight on. Gendry stared right back.

“What if I told you I have abilities too?”

Gendry leaned forward without breaking their eye contact. This was new. They hadn’t told him anything about Arya Stark being _different_. He wondered if his superiors knew. Somehow he doubted it. There was no reason to hold back information that would jeopardize disposing of this threat. A threat that was turning out to be even more dangerous and surprising than they knew.

“What can you do?”

She moved her hand in front of her face. 

“I adapt.”

A skinchanger. Gendry suppressed a shudder. He had heard of people who could change their faces or become animals. But he’s never met one. No wonder she’d managed to not get caught for so long.

“Go on,” he said. 

“In the House of Black and White I learned that one man…or girl, with the right skills, can be as dangerous as an army,” She paused. “The two of us together…we could do it.”

When Gendry didn’t say anything she continued in a different direction. “Or not. You can run back to your bosses. Maybe they’ll forgive this gigantic fuck up or yours. You can go back to killing for them. But take it from someone who knows: that shit gets old.”

“Yeah I know,” Gendry said weakly. He knew all too well and here was someone sitting across from who knew too. He could’ve killed her. And she could’ve killed him. Instead they were sitting in a booth eating waffles and trading secrets. They would be hunted and her plan was probably a suicide mission but he knew there was no going back. 

Gendry reached across the table. Arya clasped his hand in hers with a firm grip and a smile. A big one. He got a flash of a chipped tooth but it was as real and beautiful as any he’d ever seen.

It made him feel like anything was possible.


End file.
